Aging Is Optional Radio

About Aging Is Optional Radio

Here's the real mystery. How do adults like us, who maybe haven't taken the best care of ourselves throughout the years, but want to live long and healthy lives, how do we make changes to our lifestyle that will have a direct impact on our longevity so we can participate and enjoy our lives for much longer than we ever imagined? That's the burning question, and this podcast will give you the answers. My name is Mark Lindheimer, and welcome to Aging Is Optional Radio. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Mark Lindheimer

Category

health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

15 Jan 2019

Latest episode

21 Sept 2020

Latest episodes

17 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Sept 2020

   017 - Threat Mitigation with Joey Walker

   And to that point I think you’ll learn why I’m really excited to welcome Joey Walker to Aging Is Optional Radio. https://disarmanddisable.com/about/ (https://disarmanddisable.com/about/) Joey’s business is based on his twenty-five year career in law enforcement As well as his expertise as a 10th Degree Black Belt in the Martial Arts These two disciplines form the basis of techniques and tactics that are practical, easy to apply and effective against violent assailants. He’s also the author of two books: “Self- Defense Tactics and Techniques” and his most recent book “Shots Fired” Surviving an Active Shooter/Assailant. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

2. 

   10 May 2020

   016 - Win Big with Steve Little

   On Episode 6 I talked about the importance of Mentors and today I’d like to welcome one of my mentors Steve Little to Aging Is Optional Radio. We’ve known each other since around 2008 and since that time we’ve partnered in a few companies. Steve has always been a top income earner and more than that he is a true leader. Over the years I’ve gotten to know Steve and his family especially since we moved from California to Texas. Steve is an incredibly successful entrepreneur earning millions of dollars throughout his career. He has a simple philosophy - Win Big! And that’s what we’re here to talk about Welcome to the podcast Steve! ----------------------------------------------------------------- No matter your age if you're thinking about your financial future. That's good. If you're not thinking about your debt. That can be bad. But the hardest part is figuring out where to start and how to track your progress, right? That's what I struggled with for years until I found the solution. So I created a special book called “Living The Debt Free Lifestyle” to help you get on the right track. Interested? Go to crushthatdebt.net (http://www.crushthatdebt.net/) and download my free ebook now and learn how to crush all your debt faster than you ever dreamed possible. You can find the link in the show notes and on all of my social media accounts. That’s crushthatdebt.net (http://www.crushthatdebt.net/) for my free ebook “Living The Debt Free Lifestyle”. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love reading your comments! You can also find it on all of the podcast platforms. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

3. 

   17 Dec 2019

   015 - Love Is The Most Powerful Force

   Hello, everybody! On Thursday night, I got to go trick-or-treating with Shannon and Piper. It was amazing. She's five years old and loves Halloween almost as much as her mom does we all dressed up as Olaf from Frozen? It was really cold and Dallas. So we were nice and warm in our costumes. We got lots of attention from the other trick or treaters in the families. Halloween has always been my wife's favorite holiday. We’ve dressed Up in costumes in Orange County California, Las Vegas, Chicago, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and now Dallas. We've almost always had a great time. This is a difficult topic for me to talk about publicly. But I feel that if I can help someone with my story I should do it. That's really what Aging Is Optional Radio is all about. Exactly 10 years ago this past Halloween our night didn't end so well. It was actually a night that dramatically Change the course of Our Lives. Shannon had plans for us to go out. She even had multiple costumes picked out. She was going to come home from work, and we were going to dress up and go out. She usually got off of work around 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. So I decided to use my free day and go out in Newport Beach and watch the USC versus Oregon football game and then meet her at home after. What actually happened is I don't really remember all the details, but I know I drove home from Newport Beach in a drunk blackout. I'm pretty sure I stumbled past her as she sat in our living room waiting for me for God knows how long and I probably passed out in our bed. This wasn't the first time this had happened. It happened many times over the last few months. At some point the next morning November 1st 2009. I came to and walked out into our family room. There was Shannon sitting in her work clothes from the night before she hadn't even gone to bed. I couldn't say a thing. I was caught it was over. I'll never forget the look of disappointment, even disgust on her face. More than that, I'll never forget what she said to me. “You obviously love what you're doing more than you do me, and I love you too much to watch you do it. So I'm leaving you.” As she walked out the door. I thought I would never see her again. But love was the most important word that I had heard. Love is the most powerful force in the universe. She saved my life with those words. I'm convinced that God sent Shannon to save me. Have you ever been confronted by a spouse or a family member or a friend about your drinking? I was 48 years old at the time and had been drinking for over 32 years. I'm not going to go into all the gory details about my drinking career here, maybe on another episode. Over our time together, my drinking had gotten progressively worse. I had already ruined one marriage of 16 years to a wonderful woman and a great mom to our two daughters and I was on my way to ruining another one in very short order. This time Shannon and I had been married for only six months and we'd been together for about four years. If you have ever struggled with any kind of addiction, especially alcohol. I hope my story helps you or someone you love. I don't know about you, but I can remember my first drink of alcohol, I was about 16 years old and it was at a party at a friend's house. I don't really remember what it tasted like but I do remember how it made me feel it made me feel. Like a part of the group, the cool crowd, you know, the cheerleaders and the athletes. Ever since that time in high school I've been chasing that feeling. Largely unsuccessfully. All through college and my fraternity and after in my professional life. The chase was always on. I have been in professional sales for all of my life and I get paid to entertain clients. That day when Shannon left me. I knew it was over. She gave me the consequences I needed to ask for help. Everyone is different. In AA we call it hitting bottom. Some people get a DUI or a car crash, some get admitted to the hospital for physical issues, others get arrested or their family or company strongly suggest they get help, or they get fired from the job. Can you relate to any of these examples? I can only speak for what I went through. I went to my first AA meeting in Irvine California. At first I wanted to do whatever it took to get Shannon to come back to me. I had broken her trust. I had taken away her security. At the time I was really afraid I was going to lose everything! My wife, my job, my family, my car, my home. Underlying that fear I knew that if I didn't change I was probably going to die. I had taken far too many risks while intoxicated. I was broken and desperate and willing to do anything to change the way I was feeling. I had no idea what to expect but I was immediately attracted to the people I met in the AA meetings, they seemed happy and they really cared about me. I could relate to their stories and I heard my story and their stories and I'd never heard my story before. I shared this with Shannon, that I knew I'd hurt her that I needed to change, and that I really felt that I had found the answer. I asked her to give me a chance and she agreed to move back in with me, but she was watching! It turned out that not only did I have a serious problem with alcohol. I didn't know how to do life. My thinking was all messed up. If you ask me how I was doing I'd give you two thumbs up and say I'm great! Enthusiastically! But inside it was a ball of fear and insecurity. Can you relate to that feeling at all? I can't tell you the relief I felt when I first said the words, “my name is Mark and I'm an alcoholic” It was terrifying and liberating all at the same time. My new friends suggested a few simple things for me to do and they promised that if I did them my life would get better. They said one day at a time, no matter what. just don't drink. I kept hearing that I needed to get a sponsor and that he would take me through the steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. I didn't know how to get a sponsor. I'd gotten to know some of the men in the meetings and I that I'd been attending. One night, I shared that I thought I was doing the things that they suggested. Reading the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. I was going to meetings. I was listening and I was connecting to the stories. I was sharing in the meetings. I didn't know how to go about getting a sponsor. So I said I was thinking about putting an ad on Craigslist. The group burst out in laughter, but I was serious! By the end of the meeting I had three phone numbers in my hand and one of those men, Billy, lovingly walked me through the steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. At about 2 years sober Shannon and I decided to move closer to her family in the midwest where she grew up. We lived in Southern California since we met. We both love Chicago and it was our favorite City. We wanted to get rid of our cars and downsize and live in the middle of the city and enjoy everything it had to offer. I was really worried if I could leave the place where I got sober and if I could stay sober in the place I moved to. I talked to my sponsor about that fear. He said “all you have to do buddy, is get in AA! Do all the things you've done here. No matter what, don't drink! Go to 4 to 5 AA meetings a week, meet the people in the meetings, get their phone numbers, share what's going on with you and get involved. And oh by the way, find a sponsor to work with and work with others. I followed his advice and my Chicago AA experience couldn't have been better. I grew a tremendous amount in the four years in Chicago and develop some amazing friendships. I applied the same advice when we moved back to Los Angeles and I got into AA and I grew as a husband, father, worker and a friend. Now that we're living in Texas. Guess what I've done? The same thing, and I've continued to grow. Over the last Ten years, these three thousand six hundred and fifty plus days of sobriety, I've experienced many ups and downs. From the birth of Piper, to getting let go from my job a couple of times. I lost everything in a failed business venture and I've learned a lot about myself in the process. I've had the loving support of my wife and family throughout but most of all with the help of my higher power, great sponsorship, and the fellowship I've been able to build a spiritual foundation that allows me to grow and to walk through Life On Life's terms. I try not to get too high or too low. I can be present for my family, my friends and my company I work for. I have no idea what the future holds for me. All I know is that I'm grateful for my experience, the AA program of recovery, for my Higher Power and for the example of those I look up to and who show me how to walk through life with grace and dignity. Does any of my story sound familiar to you? Have you felt the same way as I did at times? Have you ever wanted to quit but we're afraid to ask for help? Have you had consequences, however large or small, because of your drinking? If you have, you can find AA resources in your local community and through an online search. Just Google “AA meetings near me”. If you want to talk or have questions, you can reach out to me at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com). You can find the Big Book of AA through Amazon.com (https://www.amazon.com/Alcoholics-Big-Book-4th-Hardcover/dp/B0072L3962) or in your local AA meetings, possibly in your library. I hope my story has helped you in some way. I'll continue to share it. That's what this podcast is all about. And most of all I truly appreciate your support. I really do. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), The Podcast App (https://podcast.app/aging-is-optional-radio-p605968/?utm_source=and&utm_medium=share), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us), Deezer (https://www.deezer.com/show/352022?utm_source=deezer&utm_content=show-352022&utm_term=3058538904_1567026560&utm_medium=web) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. I’m also excited to announce that you’ll be able to find us on SubscribeStar (https://www.subscribestar.com/aging-is-optional) where you can support the podcast. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

4. 

   10 Sept 2019

   014 - Faith with Tim Darnell

   Aging Is Optional Radio Episode 14 features Entrepreneur, author, musician singer/songwriter and most of all my good friend Tim Darnell. Learn about Tim's back story, his upbringing in the church, when he personally accepted Jesus Christ into his life, how his faith guides him and how he helps others. You can find Tm on his website http://darnellfinancial.com/ (http://darnellfinancial.com/) as well as on Facebook - Tim Darnell of Allen, TX. (https://www.facebook.com/tim.darnell) Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), The Podcast App (https://podcast.app/aging-is-optional-radio-p605968/?utm_source=and&utm_medium=share), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us), Deezer (https://www.deezer.com/show/352022?utm_source=deezer&utm_content=show-352022&utm_term=3058538904_1567026560&utm_medium=web) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. I’m also excited to announce that you’ll be able to find us on SubscribeStar (https://www.subscribestar.com/aging-is-optional) where you can support the podcast. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

5. 

   2 Aug 2019

   013 - Adventures with Suzanne Stavert

   Aging Is Optional Radio Episode 13 features Luxury Travel/Food Blogger and creator of Adventures Of Empty Nesters, my great friend Suzanne Stavert. Learn about Suzanne's background and the story of how she was able to share her passion, build an audience and ultimately travel the world representing destinations, brands and travel companies. It really is an amazing story. Suzanne's website is https://www.adventuresofemptynesters.com/ (https://www.adventuresofemptynesters.com/) and she can also be found on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook @suzannestavert. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), The Podcast App (http://bit.ly/AIORThePodcastApp), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions, want to suggest any topics or if you want to be interviewed or to interview me. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

6. 

   28 Jul 2019

   012 - Fatherhood

   We celebrated father's day recently and I got to thinking about second chances and fatherhood. On September 18, 2014 Piper was born at Prentice Women's hospital in downtown Chicago. Shannon had a C-Section and Piper spend a couple nights in the NIC Unit. I'll never forget our relief when she was able to spend more time with us in our room and eventually overnight. There's actually a picture that the photographer took of me holding Piper looking down at this helpless perfect baby. I get emotional every time I look at it and think about it. I want to love her and protect her. I want to be the best father I can be for her. I want my wife to be proud of me. I want to be an example to other fathers. I especially want to be an example to fathers my age, Baby Boomers who might be getting a second chance at fatherhood. Even an example for hands-on grandparents who have young children living with them in their homes now. I remember thinking at the time we found out Shannon was pregnant with Piper, being a Baby Boomer, was I too old? Will I have the energy to keep up with her? Would we be able to afford to raise her wherever we lived, let alone pay for college? How would raising Piper affect my relationship with my daughters Molly and Riley her half sisters? I did the best that I could 26 years ago. I was a different man back then. I love them, but looking back, I know that I wasn't always the best father to them. I wasn't always there for them. I loved them when they were young, and as they were growing up, and I love them deeply today, but I was selfish back then. I wasn't always physically and emotionally present for them. Would I be able to learn from the past? Would I be the father to Piper that God and Molly and Riley always wanted me to be? When the doctors told us the Piper would have to spend the night in the NIC Unit I knew it was serious. I prayed that she would come through it okay. I was there for Shannon and I knew I would be there for Piper no matter what! I always come back to the picture of us together. It's a stark black and white photo and there is an energy to it. The sunlight flowing through the window behind us. Holding this tiny helpless girl, this little baby in my hands.I knew I was going to be the best father I could be for her! Last Father's Day in church the pastor's sermon was titled how to become a strong family the call of fatherhood and he quoted Philippians chapter three thirteen but one thing I do forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead that's something I've learned through my experience and I try to practice every day I can't do anything about the past how I was as a father I can't dwell on it but I can learn from it I don't have to be perfect but I can't make progress every week come with Piper Thursday and Friday evenings after Shannon goes to work and when I finish my work day I mostly whether all day Saturdays and Sundays every day I try to be present for Piper there's so much to do here in Dallas we are always doing an activity of some kind we go to the parks into our pool we go to the movies go to soccer practice in our games we go to the farmers markets in minor league baseball games we go to museums one of her favorite things to do is go to an indoor trampoline park called urban air this place is huge she really has fun there wall climbing and doing obstacle courses bouncing all over the building diving into the ball pet jousting with other kids on the balance beam she's gotten so much confidence and strength from going there over the last few months she's really fearless and I'm so proud of her on Sundays I take her to Sunday school at our church and I pick her up after I get done going to service we pick up Graham after that at home and take her to church and then Piper and I have a tea party at Starbucks it's our special time together on Sundays we really love it she's a very social girl much like Malian Riley I see a lot of them in her everyone at our school loves her and she loves everyone she's just a loving girl she loves music and has always requesting her favorite songs she's always wanted to be the DJ to she's very aware of her surroundings and asks a lot of questions we really have good conversations and our time together and we have so much fun there was a boy a N. papers class last year she was going to preschool he was very disruptive and physical and he got a lot of attention early on in the car after school pepper would mention things he didn't class yelling throwing toys and books and blocks hitting and jumping on other kids we Auster of these things ever happen to her and she said yes this happened enough that Shannon and I knew it was time to take action we talked to her teachers about it but they seem to be at their wit's end they even had extra help in the class they couldn't control this boy we felt really bad for them I sent a very direct email to the school administrator requesting a meeting my number one goal is to protect my daughter Shannon and I were very up front with them we wanted them to know we love the school but we love Piper more her safety was our number one priority we felt that our classroom was an unsafe environment he wanted to know what they were doing about it if they couldn't resolve the situation would have to remove her from the school they said they had talked extensively with the boy's family they're doing the best they could seeking help and they told us that they had a three strikes rule in place for the boy if you broke the three strikes he would be gone we felt more comfortable that there was a plan for correcting the problem in the paper would ultimately be safe after that things are much better at her school as a father I try to be consistent with Piper I see a lot of myself in her she's very spontaneous and outgoing but sometimes shy I try to help her with boundaries without holding her back too much I wanted to always know she's loved by both her parents and their family is the most important thing to us she helps us become better parents I know I can't do anything about the past and how I was as a father to Molly and Riley they're adults living their lives in Los Angeles and Seattle I couldn't be more proud of them and I love them with all my heart all I can do is communicate with them and tell them I love them I believe that the next best thing I can do is to be the best father I can for Piper and to learn from the past I believe that the love and energy I pour into Piper resonates outward from us I don't know what happens from there god is in charge of the outcome but I do believe that it is good I also believe that this second chance a baby boomer fatherhood is the greatest opportunity of my life and I'm not going to waste it thanks again for joining me on aging is optional radio I hope you found some value in this episode it's really my goal you can find the podcast on iTunes and I'd really appreciate it if you could subscribe and give it a rating I love receiving comments and if you think about it please share it with your friends on social media you can also find it on Google play store and tune in radio on stitcher pocket cast cast box and paper and I'll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube you can also reach me directly at mark at aging is optional radio dot com if you have any questions want to be a guest on the show or maybe you want to have me as a guest on your podcast please shoot me an email and I also love suggestions for topics until next time thanks everybody thank you so much for listening please remember to subscribe on iTunes wherever you can finance give us a rating love your feedback would you like to see the ultimate eighteen checklist five minute guide anti aging for free if so will register you Jean it's optional radio dot com until next time thanks everybody Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

7. 

   4 Jun 2019

   011 - United We Stand

   Hello everybody! I'm sorry it's been awhile since I last publishing episode. I started working for a great company in the trade show industry which I worked in for about the last eighteen years. The people I work with are amazing and the support I've received has been more than I could ever ask for. I'm truly grateful! I've also had the opportunity to travel back to our corporate office in Chicago twice since starting in the training spend so great each training trip spent about a week long. And one other thing, we also moved from Plano Texas to McKinney Texas which is, you know, a pretty short distance but it was a long process for us to get settled into our new home. We love our new home and we're grateful to be here for the long term. Now that things are settling down I should be able to get back to of solid rhythm of publishing my podcast on a more regular basis. I have some really exciting ideas I'd like to discuss, I'm also going to be interviewing some amazing thought leaders on the topic of aging in the near future. Well let's get started on this episode! Back in 1985 I had just finished college and you know I'd been working a little bit and I'd been planning a trip to Europe with one of my friends Tommy. We were going to be in Europe for a total of about six weeks and we were really excited about it! We were going to go to England and Belgium then Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Greece and back to England and then home. Germany was by far my favorite! I just love that country! I got a chance to visit my dad's birth place which was in Frankfort. We went to Munich and explored this beautiful city and the Hofbrauhaus Munchen (http://hofbraeuhaus.de/en/welcome.htm). It was something that was just beyond my imagination! It was so huge! We took a trip out to Dachau (http://www.kz-gedenkstaette-dachau.de/)one of the concentration camps. We got to see the horrible conditions and the stories of the people of the Holocaust. It was really something that touched my heart and I'll never forget it. We also took a trip down the Rhine river and I'll never forget the castle's plucked up right up in the hill sides these beautiful amazing castles as the river meanders through that part of the country we stayed in route to shine on the Rhine in you know visited with some of the local spots we went to Baden Baden and stayed there for a couple nights and got to experience the Roman Irish bass which is really unique I'm so much history in Berlin we stayed on the west side and we toured all around the city we also went to the Brandenburg gate which is a very very famous location and at that time Ronald Reagan was early in his second term there is a lot of tension between the US and Russia at that time so there was a real global feeling that something might happen remember Reagan's famous speech in nineteen eighty seven Mr Gorbachev tear down that wall I think I'm saying it correctly as part of our experience in nineteen eighty five in Berlin we visited the wall and we actually went through a checkpoint Charlie which is the most famous location I think for tourists %HESITATION certainly to to go through from east to west and west to east there armed guards they were carrying machine grinds it was really intimidating they made us by a certain amount of east German marks as soon as we walked across the border and so we were in the cities per lan and the contrast couldn't have been more stark West Berlin was lively and bright and beautiful and fine in East Berlin was dark and grey and really kind of depressing we went and did some touristy things we went to their tomb of the Unknown Soldier and a little bit of sightseeing and %HESITATION towards the end of our time there we decide to stop off at a cafe right near the square and I remember sitting down with my friend Tommy and %HESITATION this person that was sitting nearest leaned over and he asked to see if we were Americans and he didn't spank you English very well and we didn't speak German but we're somehow able to communicate with our new friend Carl the communist and I'll stay I'll never forget he he really had an impression from Reagan Ronald Reagan %HESITATION he called in the share of any kept saying bang bang and I guess there is some connection with you know Reagan this film career when he played a cowboy and and many of the movies but there is also real respect from Carl %HESITATION for us being from America in for America and the west but we really couldn't wait to get back to the west so we gave him the rest of our east German marks and we you know made our way back to check point Charlie and back across to West Berlin in the night life in the energy and all that history that that city had to provide it was really something that all never forget and even though I got to see both sides of Berlin I'll never forget the stark divide that existed there getting to see the world is an amazing experience it's broadened my horizons I've gotten to explore different cultures I've gotten to see the birthplace of my father we raise Molly and Riley to be world travelers they've traveled the world an experienced amazing things from a very young age I was concerned at the time about the cost of this trip I didn't really have any income I didn't have a job yet %HESITATION but I really wanted to take this trip before I enter the job market and I had a lot of things on my bucket list that I wanted to see that I really understand and appreciate the price so many people paid for my freedom the history of that place World War one World War two all that our country had had done in order to give us the safety and security that we have in America everywhere we went throughout that trip through Europe there are people asking us where we were from and we always said were from California and that usually elicited a reaction to how do we like visiting their country they asked us all kinds of questions and universally everybody wanted to visit America and they wanted to come to California to we actually got to celebrate the fourth of July at a party in Italy and I remember talking to one of the girls there and she asked me a pretty interesting question she said why is it that when she visits the United States she has to speak English but when Americans come to Italy they have to speak English to us not that there was an interesting observation everybody dreamed of visiting the United States and you know that experience helped me really feel that I was living in a place that was truly blessed I recognized at that time that I lived in the greatest country on earth that travel experience helped me realize that and reinforce that nearly forty years since that trip I still feel the exact same way have you traveled outside of the United States what are your observations when you leave the United States and go to places like Europe or Asia do you see how truly blessed we are we live in a country with unmatched opportunity the land of abundance there's no limit to what we can accomplish or earn it's up to us to do the work we are free to express our thoughts on any subject and to make our own decisions we're free to protect ourselves and our families we are one United States made up of the most diverse population on the planet we are welcoming of people from other countries and other parts of the world we're the leader of the free world and our future is incredibly bright and our president is actually quite amazing why are we being told that we are a divided country at this amazing time in our history who's telling us this if you turn on the fake news you hear it all the time that we're divided that were racist that we're not treating people well that we're not taking care of people what is it that triggered this divide you don't have to look very far back you can trace it back to two years ago the twenty sixteen election there is a percentage of people who still haven't accepted the outcome of the election the people that were running for election the people there were covering the election the people that were in office at the time of the election our country prides itself on having a smooth and peaceful transition of power from one president to the next for some reason there were a group of people who are looking for an excuse as to why the election didn't turn out the way it should have in their minds after more than two years of constant drumbeat of negative information of collusion and Russia and obstruction and all these things incredible overwhelming flood of negative news coverage all of this has really put a damper on our country but I remain optimistic I remain positive I remain hopeful for our country I truly believe that the percentage of people in our country that feel the way the media tries to tell us how we feel is actually very small I believe in the eighty twenty rule I think eighty percent of the people in our country except the outcome of the election and are ready to move forward and have been since the beginning I think there are a lot of people that really don't pay that much attention to the outcome of the election and all they really care about is their own personal interests their bank account their job their safety their security and I do believe that things in our country have gotten better since that election the economy has gotten better just look at the stock market just look at your four oh one K. just look at your earnings unemployment is in historic lows these are facts this is data this is information that's readily available the media won't tell you a lot of these things but unemployment is historically low in the black community in the Latin community and in the Asian community income is up taxes are lower the stock market is booming small business prosperity has been growing at an amazing rate every segment of the economy is doing well and I'm grateful for that and I think more people should be looking at the positive rather than listening to the make negative and I did do an episode on fake news and how stress can be induced by the fake news and I still don't listen to the news I don't watch the news and I recommend for your own personal well being to avoid the news search out information on your own research it on the internet look to multiple sources talk to people really talk to people talk to people in your family outside the family at work in your neighborhood in your church connect with people about what they're thinking about their lives how they feel about their lives reach out and help them we don't need to be divided we shouldn't be divided I don't believe were divided we live in the greatest country on earth United we stand together there are forces that want to divide us but I know that they will not be successful America always succeeds America always advances America always overcomes challenges we're facing some real challenges now but I have tremendous confidence and faith in our people in our country in in the people leading us that we're headed in the right direction and you know what in twenty twenty will have an opportunity for another election in every four years we get to decide as a people the outcome of that election I'm not in control of the out com but I'm very excited for this next election and I hope you are too and I hope you continue to believe in the United States of America United we stand that's my message on this episode and I hope that resonates with you thanks again for joining me on aging is optional radio hope you found some value in this episode that's really my goal you can find the podcast on iTunes and I'd really appreciate it if you could subscribe and give it a rating I love receiving comments you can also find it on Google play store on tune in radio on stitcher pocket cast cast box in pepper and I'll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube if you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media you can also reach me directly at mark at aging is optional radio dot com if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics until next time thanks everybody thank you so much for listening please remember to subscribe on iTunes or wherever you can finance give us a rating love your feedback would you like to see the ultimate eighteen checklist in five minute guide anti aging for free if so %HESITATION register aging is optional radio dot com until next time thanks everybody Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

8. 

   28 Mar 2019

   010 - Uber

   Hello everybody! I remember the first time I rode in an Uber. It was in San Diego late summer two thousand fourteen. I had flown in from Chicago to a network marketing training event. there were thousands of people in town, it was really amazing! The weather was incredible and I took a shuttle from the airport to the hotel and literally walked everywhere. There are all of our friends in the company were all over town, and we got together and made our way to the event and to all the training sessions and it's just a really exciting time to be in San Diego. I remember my friend Patty who was there from Chicago as well made a suggestion for dinner one night she said “let's go get Ramen” and I said “that sounds awesome I know the perfect spot it's called Underbelly (https://godblessunderbelly.com/) and it's over in Little Italy” which generally make a lot of sense but I'll tell you that place is amazing! I'll link it in the show notes (https://godblessunderbelly.com/) in case you ever want to check it out. Anyway, I met up with Patty at our hotel in she said let's take an Uber. I'm like, really? they've got Uber down here? and she said yeah let's do it so we got picked up by an Uber and talked to the driver on our way over to our dinner and actually walked around afterwards and walk back to our hotel because you're pretty close. It was kind of a neat experience to be in the car with Uber driver to pick his brain about why he was driving, what attracted him to it, what he liked about it, if you had another job or business, if he was in school. We asked him a bunch of questions. It was actually a really nice conversation even though is a short drive and I remember distinctly thinking this is a really cool deal for someone. When I got back to Chicago, we lived in an amazing place right off Michigan Avenue and we're very close to all of the bus lines and the “L” and we could take taxis anywhere, but I made a decision at that point if I was going to take a taxi I was gonna take an Uber. I would rather take an Uber and support somebody who was a small business owner, that was really the way I looked at it, I wanted to support this person's business rather than put my money into a taxi driver. now I have all kinds of issues with taxi drivers given that I've lived in a city like Chicago and I've traveled a ton, so to get somebody that was a small business owner and his own car and to see what kind of experience I would have was really pretty cool. So I really really love supporting Uber drivers going back to my days in Chicago and I also travel a lot for business at the time and I was able to support Uber drivers literally all over the country in my travels. One of my favorite stories was in Chicago, I was riding with this gentleman, he was probably in his mid sixties I'm guessing. He was definitely retired. He had on a Vietnam Vet baseball cap and I was really interested in his story. We were in the car for about ten minutes so I asked him how we like driving for Uber and he said “no I like it, I enjoy it, I get a lot of variety out of it.” I go “what's your favorite part about it” he said, “well I'll tell ya, if I stayed at home with my wife and watch the news all day long and that's all we did, I'd probably kill her!” and I had to laugh! I mean, it was hysterical, but he was serious! This gave him an opportunity to get out of the house and interact with people and also have quality time with his wife when they were together. So he had a really good reason for it, he just told the story in a funny way. I was on business in San Francisco at one point this last year and I remember sitting in an Uber with a gentlemen and looking at its profile and it showed that he had twenty thousand rides and I was so impressed by that that Uber started in San Francisco so it made sense that the earliest adopters of being drivers was in San Francisco but he'd only been driving for about five years any amassed twenty thousand rides over that time says pretty amazing I was really impressed with that any clearly did it and a full time way even though we had a real estate business on the side but he was really interesting as well. so I've always made it a point to get to know the Uber drivers that I'm writing within learning their stories and finding out is it their main job or is it their main business or do they have a side business are they going to school and I really learned a lot about these people and I've come to be really impressed with their stories for the most part let's fast forward to last year we had moved to Dallas and settled in in April and it was really exciting time things are going well for us we love the quality of life we love the cost of living we're settling in and it was about middle of summer and we were basically just rolling along through life when I got the call from my company and they told me that they were letting me go and I don't know if you've ever been in that situation before but it's not something that you necessarily expect or you look forward to. It's really something that sometimes comes as a shock. I'm in sales I've been in sales my entire life and I've been through this before. I've been in a situation where I've been let go from a company for whatever reason whether it's side economic decisions corporate decisions performance decisions all these types of things happen when you're in the sales business and all I can say is I'm responsible for what happened and that I'm learning from that experience and that I plan to take that knowledge going forward into this next phase of my life. Now I'm not gonna lie, it was scary! We're living in an area where the cost of living was lower but we were also a two income family and we were definitely feeling like we're getting headed in the right direction from a saving standpoint and looking forward to buying a home here in north Dallas I needed to create income right away savings was not an option the rent was due the bills had to be paid we needed have food and gas and make it from month to month. I really felt like I was letting my family down again that fear that we could lose our apartment or cars or have our credit damaged really creeped in I didn't want to do that to my family I really needed to get busy and get into action. I've been in my industry for fifteen years and perhaps I needed to take a look at where I was and where I wanted to go in this next phase of my career. I took the opportunity to explore my options and with the love and support of my wife and my family she picked up the pace and work harder and I decided to start driving for Uber. It gave me a lot of flexibility, I was able to drive six days a week and gave me flexibility in the middle of the day to do all kinds of interviewing and contacting and networking and exploring my options. It also helped discover financial commitments and I was able to support my family through that time over the course of about seven months. I tried to do some different things that I thought would be a great opportunity for me and my family. One was an artificial turf company that had been really successful in Southern California and Arizona and I was hoping to have an opportunity to help grow that business here in Dallas but it turned out the funding wasn't quite there. I also worked on a business venture over the quite a bit of time involving a travel membership. Now this really got very close I felt but in the end the funding just wasn't there and so I ended up not getting to go forward with that. At the end I did some contract telemarketing which put me back on the phones, dialing for dollars. It was a great experience and I learned a lot about myself but all the while I was driving for Uber and I was building up some experience and I was making connections. Over that time, about eight months from July to March I amassed over 855 rides. I have a 4.95 Star Rating. I'm pretty proud of that! And I’ve met all types of riders but really the decision had to be to put my family first. These entrepreneurial spasms I call them, really weren't working out for me so I spoke with my wife and she said are you ready to put your family first and I said yes. So I decided to go back to my industry and I reached out to my network and actually found a friend who's an owner of a company who had faith in me and he gave me an opportunity to come back to our industry. There’s no coincidence that I was doing contract telemarketing and that’s exactly what I'm doing now. I'm on the phones every day reaching out and connecting with people and evolving my relationships with these contacts in our industry. And I have great confidence that I'll be building a significant business over the coming months and years. I'm a better worker., I have incredible gratitude for where I am today and I'm still driving for Uber part time which helps to save money for the future and that home we plan to buy as soon as we possibly can. Every night when I first start driving I call my brother Paul back in LA, he's my good luck charm! We talk about a lot of stuff, family, sports, politics, just life. He's gonna move to Texas some day and I'm really looking forward to it. It keeps us connected, I really think we've gotten closer as a result! And every time we talk I get a great ride which that's the reason why he is my good luck charm! Have you ever thought about driving for Uber or lift or any of the other rideshare services? have you spent much time in the back seat of and Uber as a passenger? what's your experience been like? I thought I'd share some statistics, actually some survey results, based on a survey from 2017 by The Rideshare Guy (https://therideshareguy.com/). Now he's an absolute industry leader in this space he's got a blog he's got a podcast he's got a youtube channel he puts out tons of content that's really really valuable to people that are driving in the industry and if you're looking at driving for Uber or Lyft I strongly suggest you tap into his content. He did the survey of about 1,150 respondents back in 2017, they all drove for either Uber or lyft fifty percent of the respondents were overall satisfied with their experience driving for these right your companies the most important aspect from the survey was the pay that they were receiving followed by flexibility those certainly were my most important factors fifty two percent needed extra money and twelve percent had gotten laid off while eight percent wanted to pass the time in a more constructive way so I could relate to at least two of those three somehow and I think they're probably a lot of baby boomers out there that would fall into the eight percent category thirty three percent make between ten to fifteen dollars per hour and twenty six percent make between fifteen and twenty dollars per hour and I certainly fall into that former category roughly fifteen dollars per hour on average fifty five percent of drivers %HESITATION age fifty one or more and the average is fifteen dollars per hour again that's where I fall in as a baby boomer I like to drive on the weekends my wife works Thursday through Sunday nights and I don't like to sit around and just be on the couch and watching Netflix so I like to get out and the opportunity to make additional money for my family is really important plus it gives me some variety so I drive on Thursdays sometimes Friday Saturday nights in sometime Sunday nights I usually go out about nine PM and drive until eleven thirty or midnight so it's really three hours a night maybe nine to twelve hours per week and I've been able to average between a hundred and a hundred and fifty dollars per week doing this which is been great for us it'll continue to be great for us I would meet really interesting people I found some anecdotal evidence about my passengers I think you might find interesting millennials and younger are very quiet in the car they tend to be on their phones they tend to be kind of reserve and I'm not sure if that's from a trust perspective or they're just not present and they're on their phones doing whatever they're doing Gen X. and baby boomers and older they tend to be very talkative very friendly very interested and I can identify with that type of personality in the car because that's exactly what I did couples tend to talk to each other more than they do the driver which makes sense they're out on a date or coming home from dinner and they're talking about their evening or they're planning for the next day so that makes sense and I really really enjoyed driving I really enjoy the people I've met I've gotten music in concert suggestions I've found interesting places all throughout the city of Dallas that I wouldn't ordinarily have seen I've really gotten to know the area much better than I ever could have and in a much more quicker pace then if I just was living here and working here and exploring from here to there so I'm just wanted to share this information with you this is been my experience with super have you thought about driving for Uber do you use super maybe this information will help you look at it more seriously thanks again for joining me on aging is optional radio hope you found some value in this episode that's really my goal you can find the podcast on iTunes and I'd really appreciate it if you could subscribe and give it a rating I love receiving comments you can also find it on Google play store tune in radio on stitcher pocket cast cast box and paper and I'll be adding more channels in the future including you too if you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends on social media you can also reach me directly at mark at aging is optional radio dot com if you have any questions or have any suggestions for topics I'd love to hear from you so until next time thanks everybody Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

9. 

   18 Mar 2019

   009 - Social Media

   Hello everybody! About a week or so ago Facebook was kind enough to let me know that I was “celebrating” my 12 year Faceversary. I opened my Facebook account in early March 2007. It was the first social media platform I joined. I could have joined My Space but for some reason I picked Facebook. Maybe it was the creepy rumors about My Space at the time. Who knew that 12 years later Facebook would become creepy in its own right, but that’s probably a topic for another podcast. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long when I think about it, but I could have sworn I have been on it longer. I kind of think of social media years like dog years. Where does the time go? If I want to find out where the time went I can usually find what happened on Facebook or most recently Twitter and Instagram. How long have you been on social media? What was the first social media platform you joined? Was it My Space or Facebook? How long have you been on Social Media? Where do you spend most of your time? Since back in 2007 I’ve actually enjoyed social media quite a bit and even learned a few things from it. I actually launched my first podcast in the summer of 2016. It’s called the “How Social Are You Podcast”. My goal was to ask the question “are we more or less social because of social media”. Like most people I got on Facebook because my family and friends from High School and College were on it. It was like a big high school cafeteria with even more people from outside my school mixed in. I wanted to keep in touch with them and share what was happening in my life with them. Is that why you joined Social Media? The more I used Facebook the more I realized that I was getting sucked into it and it was consuming way too much of my time. I have to admit that whether it’s Facebook, Instagram or now Twitter I have a tendency to spend more time than I probably should. I learned that it helps to have boundaries for Social Media use. Also to have filters on the information I’m consuming on Social Media. All of the major platforms give you the ability to block or mute topics or information you don’t want to see. On Facebook I have certain “friends” who I don’t see their posts. I’m still friends with them but I have unfollowed them for a variety of reasons. It could be political or just the “energy” they put out on the platform. I like my facebook feed to be positive and uplifting and for the most part if is. Do you do the same? How do you deal with topics you aren’t interested in or energy you don’t want to receive? I use Twitter as more of an information source even though I do follow some people who I’m friends with. I have created “Lists” of people who I don’t even follow but I view them as subject matter experts on topics I’m interested in like USC Football or Politics or Healthy Aging. I mainly use Instagram as a vision board of beautiful images and places I plan to visit, as well as inspirational quotes. Instagram is also the place where I’m able to follow my daughters, Molly & Riley as well as my sister and my nieces and nephew there. Piper also has a page that I maintain for her although I haven’t really added much to it over the last few years but I do tag her in every photo I post of her on my account @mlindheimer Instagram is really more of a place for Millenials and Gen Z anyway. Are you on more than one Social Media platform? Do you have different uses for them like I do? The more I got involved with Social Media, I’m a partner in a travel influencer account called @LuxuryWorldTraveler, the more I started to realize that people were becoming more connected to their phones than to the people around them. I was guilty of this too. A few years ago my wife was working in a restaurant in Santa Monica near the Pier and 3rd Street Promenade and she used to comment that she’d walk up to many of her tables to greet them and would have to wait for them to look up because they were so busy taking the right selfie, scrolling Instagram or messaging someone that wasn’t even there. They were at dinner with people but they weren’t there at dinner. Do you know what I mean? Have you ever experienced this? It was really around that time I decided to launch the the How Social Are You Podcast. It was because of what I was experiencing personally and what I was seeing around me. I wanted to bring some value to my audience just like I do now with Aging Is Optional Radio. I thought it would be interesting to share the How Social Are You Podcast with you as well. Maybe you’ll receive some value from it so here’s the first episode. Hello everybody I’d like welcome you to The How Social Are You Podcast this is Mark Lindheimer and you are listening to episode number one! Today we're going to introduce you to the podcast, share a little bit about me and more importantly what I hope to accomplish with this podcast so let's get started. So, what do I want to discuss on this podcast? Well, I’d really like to interview people about,, you know, what's going on in social media, who's using it, and how, and what are the trends in social media. But a lot of podcasts are probably talking about that already. More importantly I want to talk about how social media is affecting us as social beings and society as a whole and what part is it playing in our culture. A little bit about me. I live in Los Angeles and I'm a native Southern Californian. I'm a husband and a father of three beautiful girls. I’m a partner in an Instagram based marketing company called Luxury World Traveler. We have millions of loyal travel obsessed followers who was recently recognized by Forbes.com as one of the top ten most influential profiles to follow. So I've had some experience with social media. I'm also a baby boomer and so I've experienced the amazing trajectory personal technology has taken over the last twenty years or so and from the PC to the cell phone to message boards to Facebook and the rapid advances in social media from there.The things and products and technologies that we're dealing with on a day to day basis. I personally use almost every social media application except for My Space and I currently have active accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat. I'll admit I've found the social media applications to be useful, pretty entertaining, frustrating, and absorbing sometimes all the same time. I've also noticed that as social media has become more and more prevalent it appears that people are interacting at the human level less and less. Maybe you've noticed this? I've been wondering lately, what's the impact social media is having on us as social beings? I hope to explore many of these topics on the podcast. I want to interview a variety of people on how they're currently using social media, their observations about social media's impact on our culture, and if they have experienced any personal challenges as a result. Any recommendations or strategies they might have in order to, you know, gain some value from social media without allowing it to take over their lives. So that's the podcast in a nutshell. I hope you find it entertaining, that it helps you take a look at how you're using social media and how it's impacting you as a social being. And that you learn something that you can implement into your own life. I want to thank you again for listening. You can find the podcast on stitcher, on a speaker and Google play The How Social Are You Podcast (http://apple.co/2aqTDEH). If you have any questions or comments or if you want to contact me you can reach me on Twitter or Instagam @mlindheimer that's mlindheimer or you can email me at howsocialareyoupodcast@Gmail.com. Until next time thanks everybody. I hope you enjoyed that episode and you’ll subscribe to it. There are 19 episodes with different topics and interviews that you might find interesting. I also wanted to share a few statistics with you from this article I found called - 12 Outstanding Statistics On Baby Boomers and Social Media (https://medium.com/@LiquidLockMedia/12-outstanding-statistics-on-baby-boomers-and-social-media-2be6c49b5b91). I’ve also linked the article from Medium up above here in the show notes 82.3% of baby boomers belong to at least one social media site. (Source DMN3 (https://www.dmn3.com/dmn3-blog/should-you-market-to-baby-boomers-on-social-media)) Baby boomers spend 27 hours per week online, which is two hours more per week than those who are between 16 and 34. (Source Colorado University (http://www.freeu.com/baby-boomers-social-media/)) Baby boomers are less likely to use other social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Baby boomers take action based on what they see on social media, and most of the time it’s focused on finding more information. (Source DMN3 (https://www.dmn3.com/dmn3-blog/should-you-market-to-baby-boomers-on-social-media)) This one is kind of funny - Videos that are slower paced and have a great deal of information are more likely to appeal to Baby Boomers than faster paced videos with too many visuals. (Source QuickSprout (https://www.quicksprout.com/2016/07/08/how-to-reach-baby-boomers-gen-xers-and-millennials-with-your-online-marketing/)) Do you fall into some of these statistical categories? What do you plan to do with this information? I’d love to hear what you think. You can check out more information in the article linked above. I also wanted to share an episode of an Amazon Prime original show called Black Mirror (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5497778/). The episode is called Nosedive and you may or may not be familiar with it. I linked the IMDB to it above. Here’s the Nosedive episode description: A woman who lives in a world where most people are completely overwhelmed by the madness of being popular and important in social media ratings earns an invitation from her best childhood friend to her marriage, but certain unexpected occasions will try to stop her from reaching her destiny, had she been able to attend the wedding? There’s also a board game and app called Black Mirror: Nosedive where you can play against your friends for Social Media score superiority! Seriously... This type of social media rating is already starting to be implemented in other parts of the world like China. I view this episode and game as really a cautionary tale. What are your thoughts? Have you noticed this in your life? Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

10. 

    2 Mar 2019

    008 - Spirituality

    Hey Everybody! I wanted to honestly thank you for subscribing to Aging Is Optional Radio. Over the last six weeks since the launch of this podcast I have published eight episodes that have resulted in over 300 downloads and a global audience spanning from the united States, to Canada, Australia, France and Japan which is really exciting because I’m just getting started. I am so grateful that you are listening, that you are hopefully receiving value from the topic’s I’m discussing and that you’ll continue to participate in our community as we grow. So let’s get started. Have you ever had a near death experience? Have you ever felt like you cheated death or just “got lucky”? Back when I was around 16 or 17 years old my friend Jeff and I were driving up to Big Bear, a ski resort town in Southern California near Los Angeles, to go skiing for the weekend. Jeff’s family had a vacation house up there. I was really excited because it was going to be the first time I had ever gone skiing. We had Jeff’s car all packed up with clothes and food and assorted beverages. Hey! We were in High School! We took the back road which if you know this road, it’s really steep and winding but it gets you there faster. Anyway as we drove up the mountain we were listening to music and talking and it was getting colder and colder and a light snow had started to fall. The snow on the ground and in the trees looked beautiful. It had started to get dark and the road was pretty windy. All of a sudden we go into a downhill right hand turn. At that moment we hit a patch of black ice in the road and the car skidded across the road into oncoming traffic and off the side of the road and down a cliff. There was no guardrail so the car flipped side over side several times. We were flying around inside the car with all of our stuff for the weekend. All of a sudden we just stopped. We had hit a tree about a 150 feet down the mountain. We both were yelling, asking if each other if we were okay and miraculously we were! I had hit the windshield and jammed my shoulder. I don’t remember exactly what happened to Jeff but he was worse off than I was. We were able to grab some of our stuff so we would be warm in the snow. We tossed the beverages we could find out of the car. The car was totaled. And made our way up the hill to the road. Almost at that very moment a snow plow that was heading up the mountain came driving up. Crazy timing right? The driver seeing two teenage boys on the side of the road in the snow on a mountain road knew something was wrong so he pulled over. We told him what happened and he said that this was a dangerous spot where we went off the road. A year or so earlier a woman driving a car hit the same spot and went off the road and ended up losing both her legs due to her injuries. Around the same time a family of four went off in the same spot and they all died. How lucky could we be? If not for that tree would likely would have died. It really made no sense that there wasn’t guardrail there to protect people driving that part of the road. The tow truck driver took us to meet the Highway Patrol at a rest stop so he could take us down the mountain to get medical care and meet our parents. He also told us about accidents that had happened in that very spot. I’ve thought of that accident many times throughout the years. For four summers during college I worked at a Tennis Ranch in Big Bear and I drove that same road every other weekend up and down the mountain. Every time I drove past that spot my hands got sweaty and my grip got tighter. I had a physical reaction at the memory and being so close to the place where I nearly died. Have you ever had an experience like this? I’ve actually come to believe that there really are no coincidences. None. Everything happens for a reason and there is a larger plan in play. I believe that there is a force, a power, an energy, a higher power or God if you will, that is bigger than me that controls everything in the universe. That force has a plan for me and everything else. Accepting that makes life a lot easier for me to live life on a daily basis. Sure, bad things happen in the world and I’ve had my share of hardship but I accept it. I am not in control. My daily challenge is to be in alignment with that force or energy. Things usually work out better when I do. I was actually raised Catholic and went through the whole process from baptism to Confirmation. I drifted away from the church in my college years. Later I was actually married in the Catholic Church. And We raised our daughters Molly & Riley in the Catholic Church. I don’t have anything against the Catholic Church, I just don’t really align with it today. Over the last 10 years I’ve spent a lot of time studying about this force. I’ve been in mastermind groups on this very subject I’ve listened to countless podcasts and read many books. I actually go to a Baptist church here in North Dallas where Piper goes to school. I really enjoy it and I know as a result I’m learning a lot about another book that many of the other books I’ve read are based on. The Bible. But book knowledge and understanding is great. Putting the knowledge into practice is a whole different challenge for me. The challenge for me has always been about control. Can you relate? For a long time I believed for some reason that I could control outcomes. I’ve come to believe that this belief comes from my inherent selfishness. I think every human is a bit selfish. Some of us take it to the extreme. I used to joke that I have superpowers. Can you relate? Do you know anyone like this? Have you ever felt that you can will yourself to some outcome? I’ve had some very painful consequences, both family and business related, that have helped me realize that when I am selfish and thinking I’m in control things don’t turn out well at all. Maybe this sounds familiar to you. Over the last 10 years from my mid 40’s to my mid 50’s, through lots of personal work and study, I have come to believe that I’m really a spiritual being having a physical experience. I’ll say that again, I’m a spiritual being having a physical experience. This is actually a quote from the French philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_of_Jesus) (French: [pjɛʁ tejaʁ də ʃaʁdɛ̃] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/French) (listen (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/GT_Pierre_Teilhard_de_Chardin.ogg) (help (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Media_help)·info (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:GT_Pierre_Teilhard_de_Chardin.ogg))); 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French idealist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_idealism) philosopher and Jesuit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_of_Jesus) priest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_priesthood) who trained as a paleontologist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleontology) and geologist (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geology) and took part in the discovery of Peking Man (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking_Man). He said “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” I believe we all are. The question is, do we realize it or not? nd the follow up to that is, what are we going to do about it? What I try to do is to rely on the spiritual force that is around and through all of us, throughout my day. To live without expectations. To trust that everything will be perfect The problem is that sometimes when I first wake up in the morning my brain starts to go to work on the future. I start to make plans. Sometimes I think I’m in control again. I become selfish I have to recognize when this happens that I need to take steps to turn my attention away from myself and toward this force or energy. I have to let go of the illusion that I am in control. Than I have to go to work and accept whatever the outcome it. Over this time I have grown quite a bit spiritually but I still have a long way to go. Breaking old habits and beliefs takes time and effort. I find that my routine of starting my day with some spiritual reading, prayer and meditation helps me get out of my own head and to connect to this energy. I also try to end my day in gratitude. This helps me sleep with a clear mind. When I do I start and end my day spiritually connected and get into the flow I am more peaceful and productive. I am more connected to those around me because I believe we are all made of and connected to this energy. When I do this things usually work out for the better but I try to accept the outcome no matter what. There are many articles and studies on Aging and Spirituality but I found this article by Lawrence Samual PHD in Psychology Today most interesting. It’s titled “Will Baby Boomers Every Find Religion?” I have linked it in the show notes here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/boomers-30/201712/will-baby-boomers-ever-find-religion The article goes on to say that “many baby boomers are becoming more spiritual as they age”, something that is completely consistent with the historical pattern of individuals finding religion in their later years. Whether greater spirituality (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/spirituality) is part of the process of becoming a more evolved human being or more about a greater awareness of one’s own mortality, boomers are pondering deep thoughts about the meaning of life and what might come next. That’s certainly true for me. What about you? For a good number of boomers, finding a little or a lot more faith is a kind of coming full circle. America was a much more religious (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/religion) place in the 1950s and 1960s, and kids were likely to get a heavy dose of traditional Judeo-Christian dogma. Organized religion was perceived as part of the “system” many boomers found to be overly authoritarian as they became young adults, however, making them look elsewhere to fill spiritual needs. The Baylor Longitudinal Study of Religion showed Around 85% of Americans believe in some kind of God, but only about 30% attend a church, synagogue, temple, or mosque, hard evidence of this cultural shift from religion to spirituality. Boomers’ gravitation to a myriad of personally defined avenues of spirituality reflects their gradual realization that they are part of something much, much bigger than themselves. Boomers are likely to construct their individual concept of spirituality based on their internalized belief system, overarching view of the world, and perceived role in life itself. I can really identify with the finding in this article. Can you? Do you try to live a spiritual life? Do you believe in a power greater than yourself? How do you incorporate it into your life? Do you have a spiritual or religious routine? As you age what part does it play in your life? How important is it to you? If you haven’t developed a spiritual connection why not? Is it something that might be missing in your life? So you have any thoughts you’d like to share with me? I’d be really interested in your feedback. Feel free to send me an email at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) and let me know. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

11. 

    18 Feb 2019

    007 - Music

    Let’s talk about music! What has music got to do with aging? I don’t know about you but I love music! I’ve been a fan of music, especially live music my entire life. Do you enjoy music? What genre do you love? Who’s your favorite band? Do you have a particular song that reminds you of an event or time in your life? Your first dance? Your first kiss? It all started for me in middle school when I joined the band. Yes I was a band geek and I still am at heart. Somehow I decided I wanted to play drums. I’m sure this drove my parents crazy but they supported me anyway. I took lessons and even bought and drum kit. All throughout High School in the mid to late 70’s (remember I’m a Baby Boomer) I was fortunate enough to be friends with the best musicians in our High School band. In fact two of my best friends from that era, Sal who plays saxophone and all woodwind instruments and Alex who plays trombone, are living their dreams as professional musicians to this day. They also teach music! They are enormously talented but work really hard at it too! I have incredible respect for them and anyone who makes music their profession. Now what was actually cool is that our High School marching band was one of the best in the state of California at the time. We regularly competed in parades where we were judged against other bands from all over and we did really well often winning the competitions. We performed at the halftime shows on the field during our football games. We even marched in the Rose Parade in 1979! Not only was I able to play in the Marching Band but I was able to learn many different types of percussion and was able to participate in the Orchestra, the jazz band and the pep band which allowed me to learn to play many different styles of music. Looking back on it it was pretty amazing growing up playing music live in front of so many different audiences. Can you relate? Did you play an instrument growing up? What was your experience with music either playing or being in the audience? My friends Alex and Sal and I also traveled to Los Angeles and Hollywood to see live jazz played by some of the greatest performers of our time. My favorites were the jazz drummers Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson. They were amazing showmen! Back then we also got to see amazing jazz bands playing at Disneyland too! Around that time in high school I also fell in love (thanks to Alex) with progressive rock music - Emerson Lake & Palmer, Yes, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Supertramp, Jethro Tull, Kansas. The list goes on. I loved the sophistication of the music. It was almost orchestral! I was always playing their albums and trying to play along with their music on my drum kit. What type of music did you love growing up? Rock? Heavy Metal? Pop? Country? Jazz? Did you have a favorite band? With so much musical influence in my life I knew I wanted to see all of these great bands and musicians play music as much as possible and as often as I could. Living Southern California there were so many venues to see live music between Orange County, Los Angeles and Hollywood. But how could I afford to see all the live music I wanted, the bands that I loved? Concert tickets were costly and I didn’t really have a job back then. I also wondered if I would be considered cool, part of the in crowd, if I didn’t go to these concerts with my friends. How would I feel if my friends went to the concerts and I didn’t get to go too? I still remember asking my parents if I could go see KISS in concert when I was around 14 or 15 years old and they said no. I still have a resentment toward them to this day for that even though I’ve seen KISS a few times since. I think that denial fueled my fire to never miss a concert that I wanted to see again! Somehow, I don’t really remember how, I met a scalper who had connections to the boxoffice at The Forum where The Lakers and Kings played their games. The Forum was also the arena where all of the biggest bands on tour would play. Once or twice a month we would meet up at 6am as a group at a local breakfast spot called Norms in Inglewood. This was on the days the tickets would go on sale and there would be a line around the building of people who had gotten there early to buy tickets. Do you remember lining up for tickets early in the morning for a concert? Or trying to call Ticketmaster and getting a busy signal and hanging up and dialing over and over again? Anyway, Ticket Scalper Tony would give us a raffle ticket with a number on it, almost always in the first 10 to 20 numbers which was our place in line. He would also give us a wad of cash to buy a certain number of tickets. We would then show up at a certain time before the ticket office opened and go right to the front of the line. It was really pretty amazing. I would work with him as often as possible to get tickets to shows. We had the choice to get paid cash or we could get tickets to a concert. I saw countless shows in High School and College through my connection to Tony and on my own. My seats were almost always in the first 10 rows! I saw Queen, Rush, Yes, Bad Company, Kansas, Boston, Journey, Styx, Supertramp, The Who, Springsteen and Foreigner just to name a few. In college I also saw tons of shows in smaller venues around the area with my fraternity brothers and friends. We saw The Clash and The English Beat at The Hollywood Palladium, (still the greatest show I’ve ever seen live!). Bad Manners,Madness , I saw local bands like X and The Red Hot Chilli Peppers multiple times. I even saw Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr and Liza Minnelli when I was in college. The list goes on and on! When I hear songs from my iTunes library or I play them on Amazon Prime Music I often flash back to where I was when I saw the band and who I was with. Have you ever noticed that movie soundtracks have familiar songs from our youth? Even Marvel movies like Guardians of The Galaxy or even Deadpool have great soundtracks that take you back in time! I have so many life experiences and memories tied to the live concerts I’ve seen and the music I have. It’s like that scene from the movie “High Fidelity” between the record store owner Rob played by John Cusak and Dick played by Jack Black: Dick: I guess it looks as if you’re organizing your records. What is this though? Chronological? Rob: No… Dick: Not alphabetical… Rob: Nope… Dick: What? Rob: Autobiographical. Dick: No way! If you listened to my “Excuse Me?” episode about my hearing loss I’m sure it can be traced directly back to my love for live music. Throughout the years I’ve seen countless concerts, big and small, with friends and family. Shannon and I have seen many great shows over the years together like Sting, Arrowsmith and LL Cool J but the highlight had to be Prince which was one of the all time greatest individual performances I have ever seen! I am so grateful I was able to see Prince before he passed away. I remember taking my daughters Molly and Riley to see Britney Spears and taking Riley to see The Foo Fighters! It was an awesome event to experience together! My girls both love live music and I’m sure Piper will too! So you may be asking yourself what’s the point in all of this and what does it have to do with aging? Mainly it’s because I believe music, especially live music, has given me so many gifts and I believe it can help you too! I also believe that as we age Music can help our brains and our attitudes. I’ve linked an article in the show notes about Three Scientifically Proven Ways Music Improves The Lives of Older Adults: https://www.cmsschicago.org/news-blog/three-scientifically-proven-ways-music-improves-the-lives-of-older-adults/ (https://www.cmsschicago.org/news-blog/three-scientifically-proven-ways-music-improves-the-lives-of-older-adults/) Playing and listening to music can have tremendously positive effects on people, especially seniors, both physically and emotionally. According to studies detailed by Music Education Research International (http://cmer.arts.usf.edu/content/articlefiles/3122-MERI04pp.19-30.pdf), “Active music participation holds numerous benefits for senior citizens,” from mental and physical health, to overall happiness. Below are some of the many benefits music can have on older adults. 1. Memory Enhancement Throughout life, music often finds itself tied to unique memories. A time in your past may be defined by one particular song or style of music. This is no different for seniors; music can have a huge impact on mental health. A study published in the Oxford University Journal, Cerebral Cortex (http://cercor.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2014/03/02/cercor.bhu030.abstract), found that memory can be improved by listening to music. Music can force a kind of automatic recall, bringing what may have been considered a previously lost memory back to the surface, while also exercising a person’s day-to-day short term memory. 2. Improvements in Overall Health While music is proven to help with memory, active participation in music has shown to have many other health benefits for seniors, including: Pain and stress relief (http://cmer.arts.usf.edu/content/articlefiles/3122-MERI04pp.19-30.pdf), which can lead to a reduced need for medicine and an overall healthier life. Stroke recovery (http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/content/131/3/866.long), where listening to music helps increase verbal memory while also reducing the risk of recovery slowing depression. Blood pressure and heart health (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/11660663/classical-music-blood-pressure-heart-disease.html) improvement as a result of listening to classical music. Boosting immune system health (https://www.heartmath.org/assets/uploads/2015/02/Music-and-the-Immune-System.pdf), affording seniors the ability to better ward off diseases. 3. Greater Happiness According to Music Education Research International (http://cmer.arts.usf.edu/content/articlefiles/3122-MERI04pp.19-30.pdf), “Through music participation, senior citizens are able to (a) increase self-understanding, (b) achieve success as learners, (c) participate in experiences that are rewarding and interesting, and (d) express themselves creatively. These elements have been shown to enhance the quality of life of older adults.” Here are many ways that I believe Music improves my life today and will in the future. When I know I’m going to a concert I look forward in anticipation to the night of the show! That excitement helps me feel alive! Not everyone listening may love the crowds or the energy of a live show and that’s okay. I have thousands of songs in my iTunes library and I subscribe to Amazon Music as well. I can pick any song or type of music depending on my mood or what I’m doing. I use music in a variety of ways. I’ve always involved in my life I know that It’s helped me with my memory and with my mood If I need more energy for a workout I know what kind of music or playlist to play If I’m driving I pick different genres or eras for music depending on my mood If I need to focus I love to listen to ambient or deep house music If I’m meditating I listen to beats or natural sounds which has a similar effect to music Maybe some of these will work for you? Am I leaving anything out? What would you add to the list? I’d be really interested in your thoughts. Feel free to send me an email at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) and let me know. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

12. 

    11 Feb 2019

    006 - Mentors

    Hey Everybody! I’m fighting a bit of a cold but I think we’re going to get through this. My commitment to you is to publish at least one episode per week and so far I’m on track. This will be the 6th episode in 6 weeks. So let’s do this! Have you ever had a mentor? Have you ever needed at mentor? Particularly as an adult. Someone you looked up to who you could turn to to help you make decisions or teach you something you were trying to learn? For some people it might be their dad or mom or a teacher or a sports coach. What is a mentor? Webster's Dictionary defines Mentor as an experienced and trusted adviser. Synonyms - adviser, guide, confidant, confidante, counselor, consultant, therapist. Thinking back to my college days that was the first time I ever had someone I would call a mentor. His name was Jim and he was my big brother in our Fraternity, Sigma Chi. I joined Sigma Chi back in the early 1980 at Cal State University Long Beach. At the time I really didn’t know anyone at school except my roommate. It was time to meet new people and build some lasting friendships. They had something called Rush Week where you could go from fraternity house to fraternity house to meet the men and get a feeling for each one on campus. Most of the Rush Week Events were parties and there were lots of coeds there as well. At least that’s how I remembered it. As you go through the week you’re supposed to narrow down your choices on the fraternity you want to join based on whatever criteria you decide but you also hope that the one you want picks you as well. Sigma Chi was always my first choice. Ultimately I received a bid from Sigma Chi and I couldn’t have been happier. Each pledge class has a trainer who takes you through the process of working as a team, learning about the fraternity and becoming a contributing Active member. Back then there was some physical stress involved but I wouldn’t call the hazing life threatening. Our pledge trainer really looked out for us and our safety. He understood the purpose. In the beginning each pledge is assigned a Big Brother who coaches him individually through the process based on his, the big brother’s, experience. He’s there to answer questions and make sure you’re making progress to become a contributing member of the fraternity. Jim was my Big Brother and he became a mentor to me and a close friend throughout college and for some time after. I really trusted him which is a huge deal in a mentor / mentee relationship. You may know the saying, “when the student is ready, the teacher appears.” He was the perfect Mentor for me at that time in my life. For about the last ten years, each time I have been in a position where I needed help and guidance the right person has appeared. I just had to be willing and open to it. But that wasn’t always the case. There was a long period of time from after college until about 10 years ago where I guess I really felt like I didn’t need a mentor. At least I wasn’t actively seeking one out. Which is strange because I knew the value of those relationships. Have you ever felt that way? Like you had it all figured out? I was going through life, raising our daughters Molly & Riley with my first wife, working and doing the family thing. We were having fun, not a lot of worries during that time. At least that’s what I thought while I was going through it. We were more of a team during many of those early years. But at some point something had begun to change in me. I became less of a team player. This was the tipping point in my life. I was having the most financial success in my life. I was traveling all the time for business. Life was really good, or so I thought. In retrospect I had really become incredibly selfish and my ego got the best of me. I sometimes joke that “I’m not much but I’m all I think about” but it's true! I started to believe that my success was because of me and I was responsible. Around 2008 - 2009 when the housing market crashed. The ripple effect throughout the economy was dramatic. Many experts called it a recession. No matter what you called it, It was definitely a crisis. My business dropped about 40% over night and I panicked. I didn’t handle it well at all. I didn’t have anyone to turn to and I began to make a series of horrible decisions. Everything I tried failed. I was financially ruined and I did real damage to my family and those closest to me. . With my track record of lack of success I needed to try something different. What I was doing clearly wasn’t working. I needed to find people who could be my experienced and trusted advisors. This was a humbling experience, I had to be willing to ask for help. I had learned that at this point in my life someone like me really shouldn’t make any major decisions unless I bounce it off of one of my mentors and especially my new wife Shannon who helped me so much. She practically saved my life. I had to be willing to take action based on their direction. At this point I hard really hit rock bottom. I was desperate and knew I needed help. Thankfully my first mentor was of the Spiritual kind. His name was Billy and he helped me understand that I really wasn’t in control of anything. That I needed to shift my perception from Mark centered to Other centered. He challenged me to work hard, to accept where I was and to be grateful. He always said “you know buddy, you’re not in charge of the outcome” and somehow that resonated with me. He helped me learn to put my family and other people in my life ahead of me. Even though we don’t live near each other any more we still stay in contact and I can always turn to him for help and guidance. I have had other Spiritual mentors over the last 10 years like Jim & Ben who I’ve been able to turn to for guidance. I have people who I consider business mentors who were very helpful throughout this last venture I was involved with. I have also found authors and subject matter experts who I respect and consider Mentors even though I don’t have direct access to them. They write books and have podcasts that I have learned so much from. I have also been involved in Mastermind Groups where we meet regularly and the group really becomes a mentor to help work through various challenges. Mastermind groups could be an entire podcast episode. Stay tuned... Over the last 10 years things haven’t always gone perfectly. I have made decisions even with good counsel and mentors and good intentions that didn’t end so well. At one point after one of these decisions my daughter Molly said to me “You always come to us and say, this is what I’ve decided is best for everyone in the family”. “What makes you think you know better than I do what’s best for me? What’s best for our family?” Ouch! But it was true! I didn’t know and I didn’t ask them what they thought. My wife used to say, at what point were you going to include me in the decision process? And this could be just picking a restaurant! Recently a business I had been working on with some partners for more than 5 years came to an end. I talked to some of my mentors about it. I had to examine my part in it. Was it something that I wanted to happen more than the partners did? Or was I relying on someone else to create success for me rather than charting my own course? I can’t go back in time and change any decision I’ve made, actions I’ve taken or the results of those decisions and actions. I can only learn from the experience and move forward. I can and also turn to my mentors to help me learn from the experience. I have also learned that I’m never to old or experienced to benefit from working with a mentor. Someone will always know more than I do and can help me in the direction of my life. It may sound like most of these examples had difficult outcomes, but that’s where the growth comes from. There have been plenty of positive results from working with the mentors in my life. What about you? Do you have a mentor or mentors you can turn to? What kind of value have you received from your mentors? Have they changed over time? Where did you find them? If this episode has you thinking that you could benefit from having a mentor. Here are some areas where mentors can be found: Spiritual or Church advisors Business Mentors Health & Wellness Coaches Life coaches Psychologists Authors Motivational Speakers Podcasters Am I leaving anything out? Who would you add to the list? I’d be really interested in your experience. Feel free to send me an email at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) and let me know. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

13. 

    3 Feb 2019

    005 - Fake News!

    So I was thinking about a time when we were living in Chicago back in 2012 in a high rise apartment on the 40th floor. A beautiful location right on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. We had spectacular views of the Navy Pier, Michigan Avenue and the lake. We didn’t have cars so we walked everywhere. We were able to explore the city from the ground level, step by step. It was just my wife and I and our two Chihuahua’s Winston & Brooklyn. This was before Piper came along. We were packed into in about 700 square feet. We didn’t even have a door to our bedroom. But we loved it! It was around the time of the 2012 election and I was deeply into “Election News”. I was consuming a lot of information on TV, radio and the internet. I’ll admit something, I’ve always been kind of a political junkie. I’m a lifelong Republican and the information was so available because of the internet and social media I was completely over consuming. Honestly, I knew Democrats, especially in Chicago, who were just as obsessed as I was. I think it was really the first Internet/Social Media election of consequence. Honestly, the whole election was stressing me out. Our place was really small but thankfully chihuahua’s don’t take up much space. Anyway, I don’t even remember why but Brooklyn pissed me off really badly. She might have peed on the carpet for like the 40th time. I was IRATE! I chased her around the apartment with one of those swifter things that you use to mop the floor with. She ran under our bed so fast I couldn’t reach her. I was seeing red and I think if I had caught her I’m not sure what I would have done to her. My wife finally asked me to leave the apartment and take a breather Once I had a chance to calm down and think about what I had done I realized that my reaction to the situation was way out of perspective. I’m not prone to anger or outbursts. I did owe Brooklyn and apology and promptly gave it to her. In retrospect, I was sure it was stress related. I really wanted to get a handle on what happened. Why was I so stressed out? We lived in an amazing location, in the best city in the country, work was going well, we were really happy. I had to take stock of what was going on in my life and I knew I needed to make changes. I realized that I had gotten sucked into all of the drama of the election. I wanted the outcome that I wanted and I was sure it would happen. The information I was consuming confirmed my bias. But I still had doubts and this worried me. I was borderline obsessed with a future outcome I had no control over. I was spending way too much time, consuming information and the emotional swings were dramatic. It was taking its toll on my psyche and my overall health. I wasn’t sleeping well, I wasn’t eating right, I was wound way too tight. Can you relate? Have you ever felt this way? The incident with Brooklyn was the tipping point for me. Who gets that mad at an 8-pound dog? And to this day she’s still the nicest dog we’ve ever owned. I knew I needed to look at the source of my stress. For me, it was “The News” and all the other sources available. This was at the beginning of when Social Media had become a factor in elections. Also, blogs were churning out tons of information. Talk radio was a constant drumbeat. When I sat back and looked at it, all of it was causing me stress! It was time for a digital dismount. I needed to cut out 90% of what I was consuming. I stopped watching The News because it was all so negative anyway. Some might call it “Fake News” today, I know I do. I believe it was and is designed to upset me, us, no matter what “side” we’re on. It really doesn’t matter if you watch CNN, MSNBC or Fox News they are all trying to do the same thing. They want an emotional reaction from you. That hasn’t changed since 2012 when I made the decision, it’s actually gotten worse. So I deleted my bookmarks of the blog sites I was following. I stopped listening to Talk Radio and started listening to Books On Tape. More personal development, more positive mindset. I filtered my social media removing all political info and opinion. It didn’t matter if it was coming from a news source or a facebook friend I blocked all of it. My plan was to see how I felt without all this info in my life. I also focused on my diet, exercise, water consumption and sleep. It didn’t take me long, only a couple days to start feeling better. That election did happen and I did plug back in from time to time to find out the latest. But way less than I was before. When I did plug back in I felt my stress rising. I was thankful that the election finally was decided so that I could move on. I had to accept the results and carry on with my life. It wasn’t going to affect me anyway. Sure I was disappointed but I’m sure it was less than if I been consuming “The News” at the level I was before or worse. Here is some survey data for you to think about: In 2012 A Pew Research survey (http://www.pewresearch.org/topics/2012-election/) found that television news viewership had remained relatively stable. 55% say they watched the news or a news program on television yesterday, little changed from recent years. In 2017 a Pew Research survey (https://www.recode.net/2018/1/7/16856574/tv-news-ratings-audience-donald-trump-pew-research) found that just 37 percent of Americans got news “often” from local TV last year, down from 46 percent in 2016. Network TV's regular news audience dropped by four points, and now 26 percent of Americans get news often from network TV Even in 2017 the trend was heading downward. Whether it was because people were then and are now getting their news from other sources, because they didn’t want to feel stressed out or if they realized that it was actually “Fake News” remains to be seen. As far as I’m concerned since 2012 I have hardly watched “The News” at all and I think it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. That’s a long time! Is anyone out there listening doing the same? And you know I figured out that I can get “my news” when I want to from sources I trust. My main source for information is actually Twitter. I follow certain people on Twitter who I believe provide value in my areas of interest whether it’s politics, health and aging, business or sports. The list of people expands and contracts all the time. On a daily basis In a short amount of time I can scan the topics “lists” I have created that provide me with the information I’m looking for. And if I find something interesting I can research for more articles and information I want. I am more in control of the information I am consuming. As opposed to being “spoon-fed” information, especially political information, that fits a certain narrative. And is designed to upset me. Since 2012 my stress level is considerably lower and I feel much better. Maybe you’re feeling stressed out? Maybe you consume a lot of “The News”? Maybe you are ready to make some changes? Perhaps you would like to try some of the steps I’ve taken to and filter the information that I receive and reduce my stress level. If you do I’m confident you’ll feel better. Reduced stress is one of the keys to healthy aging. Give it a try. What have you got to lose? Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

14. 

    28 Jan 2019

    004 - Excuse Me?

    A couple years ago we were living back in LA and I was getting ready for my annual checkup. I try to be consistent in getting the annual checkup and all the blood work and certainly given my age the colonoscopy which is probably a topic for another episode but I digress. As I’m walking out the door to the appointment my wife says from the other room “make sure you get your hearing checked”. I’m like, “excuse me?” She says, a little louder this time “make sure you get your hearing checked”. Now, at this point, we’d been together for more than a decade so she knows me and my shortcomings pretty well. At this point, I’m about 55 years old. She’d always given me a hard time for my “selective hearing” but even I was noticing that I had to have the TV volume up really high in order to hear all the dialog. When we went to concerts I made it a point to wear ear plugs because my ears would ring for many hours after the show, sometimes into the next day. Also I was having a hard time hearing in restaurants with all of the background noise and I was in sales and entertained a fair bit. It’s challenging when you have to say “excuse me?” or “can you please repeat that” or even worse just act like you’re hearing what people are saying when you’re only hearing part of the conversation. Sound familiar? Can you relate to any of this? Anyway I reluctantly agreed to ask the Dr to check my hearing. At the appointment, they asked all the usual questions and did all the usual tests but when the time came for the hearing test they had to get this special machine called an Audiometer. You put these little headphones on and they checked my ability to hear sound intensity and tone. The Nurse said the test showed that I definitely had hearing loss and that he would recommend that I visit an Audiologist. I was referred to an Audiologist in our town by a friend but you can find one by a simple google search. You can also check reviews that way but I went with the personal referral. You would be surprised how many people you know, have an audiologist. I met with Strawberry shortly after and she put me through the whole process from beginning to end. She put me in this little soundproofed room with headphones on and gave me an Advanced Hearing Screening. It only takes a few minutes and gave me a baseline to how I was hearing. Strawberry showed me an audiogram that displayed my left and right ear. I learned that most people can hear the words people are saying to them, but miss certain syllables that can mix up the words. It’s the frequencies that I don’t hear that’s causing the problem. I wanted to be present for my wife's and family. It's hard to focus and contribute when you can't hear half of what's being said. I didn't really know anything about hearing loss. I Just thought it was something that happens without age. I was really being selfish and vain of me. It didn't want to wear hearing aids! What would people think of me? What would they say behind my back? Would they judge me? I thought it was just one of the challenges with aging. Stubbornly thought I don't have to accept my hearing loss. My quality of life and those around me were affected. I had to be willing to ask for help. My wife asked me to seriously get my hearing checked. She’s been there with me through a lot. When she asks me to make a change I should listen. She has helped me immensely through our life together to improve as a man a father and a husband. Experience at the audiologist was not as bad as I thought. I had a 30-day trial to see if the hearing aids would work for me. I was able to visit the audiologist once a week to fine-tune the hearing aids. We actually tried a couple different size cones that go inside the ear to make sure the fit was proper and the quality of sound was good. Also tried a Bluetooth type of device that enabled the hearing aids to hear the phone but that didn't really work so we didn't go with that. The audiologist in the hearing aids were not covered by insurance. Surprisingly hearing aids or an elective procedure. My audiologist had financing so I was able to afford to pay for my hearing aids over time. After a little while, I got really comfortable wearing hearing aids. But I found in noisy restaurants it was difficult to hear my wife or the company I was with because I hear everything now. In the end, I found that my quality of life improved dramatically because I'm able to hear vastly better than I could before. I'm able to be present for my wife when we are speaking to each other even in separate rooms. But mostly when we're together at home or on a date. Also when I go to the movies I don’t wear the hearing aids because the sound is so much louder and I can hear the dialogue just fine. And when I go to a concert I wear ear plugs to reduce hopefully the damage. I still listen to podcasts and music with ear buds and I have to have the sound turned up to enjoy what I’m listening to. I really don't think twice about wearing the hearing aids in public and with other people will think. My hearing is so much better that I can hear people from across the room. I can't believe that I waited so long to take care of this and I hope because of my story more people will do the same. Hearing loss statistics at a glance https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/52814-Hearing-loss-statistics-at-a-glance (https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/52814-Hearing-loss-statistics-at-a-glance) Hearing loss is the third most common physical condition behind arthritis and heart disease, affecting people of all ages According to the Hearing Loss Association of America (https://www.hearingloss.org/hearing-help/hearing-loss-basics/), approximately 48 million Americans (20 percent) report some degree of hearing loss (https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/hearing-loss). Age is the strongest predictor of hearing loss among adults ages 20-69 Those age 60-69 have the greatest amount of hearing loss 25 percent of American adults have experienced tinnitus (https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/tinnitus) lasting for at least five minutes in the past year. Adult men (age 20-69) are twice as likely to have hearing loss than women of the same age. As women age, they have more difficulty hearing at lower frequencies than do men. 3.65 million hearing aid units were dispensed in the United States during 2016. The average age of first-time hearing aid wearers is 70 years of age. A large number of people wait 15 years from the time they know they have hearing loss until they purchase their first hearing aids (Better Hearing Institute (http://www.betterhearing.org/)) Hearing aid prices (https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/hearing-aids/prices) range from $1,000 to $4,000 per device depending upon the level of technology (https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/hearing-aids/technology)they contain. Of the 28.8 million Americans (age 20-69) who could benefit from wearing hearing aids, fewer than 16 percent have ever used them. Of those age 70 and older who could benefit from wearing hearing aids, fewer than 30 percent have ever used them. Thanks again for joining me on Aging Is Optional Radio. I hope you found some value in this episode. That’s really my goal. You can find the podcast on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio/id1449553635?mt=2) and I’d really appreciate it if you would subscribe and give it a rating and I love receiving comments! You can also find it in the Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iuiry6dl3lp7wzx264ax5kkcwv4), on TuneIn Radio (https://tunein.com/podcasts/Health--Wellness-Podcasts/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-p1187865/), on Stitcher (https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/aging-is-optional-radio), PocketCasts (https://play.pocketcasts.com/web/podcasts/91e2ffd0-fe31-0136-324e-08b04944ede4), CastBox (https://castbox.fm/channel/Aging-Is-Optional-Radio-id1987722?country=us) and Pippa (https://shows.pippa.io/agingisoptionalradio). And I’ll be adding more channels in the future including YouTube. If you like what you hear please be sure to share the podcast with your friends and on social media. You can also reach me directly at mark@agingisoptionalradio.com (mailto:mark@agingisoptionalradio.com) if you have any questions or want to suggest any topics. Until next time, Thanks, everybody! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

15. 

    22 Jan 2019

    003 - Energy

    We recently went to The State Fair Of Texas and It is BIG! We got there at 2:30 and left at 7:30. We had a great time! Horses, goats, pigs, sheep. Piper lead the pee wee rodeo parade. We ate plenty of fair food, had In & Out on the way home. Piper was out in the car and my wife was out by 9:00. I’d been eating healthy leading up to that day and the next day felt like doo doo Piper is 4 years old and I’m 57 years old and I’m with her 4 days a week and she is High energy! I really want to keep up with her, Keep her entertained, Keep her active. I want to actively participate in her activities. To create memories with her. At the end of the day if I’m not eating right I’m exhausted, she’s spent too much time watching TV or tablet. I’m more tired than she is! When this happens I feel like I’m a bad dad. I’m letting her down, letting technology entertain her. I’m not teaching her how to enjoy outdoors, sports and I’ve failed to create memories. I stress eat late at night, I gain weight quickly and lack energy. My sleep isn’t quality so I suffer the next day. I finally got tired of feeling exhausted and letting Piper entertain herself. I know what to do with my diet, exercise, water consumption and sleep. I know that food = fuel. A healthy Diet = Energy. My plan is to consume a healthy protein shake at least one meal per day, usually for breakfast. To have a healthy lean protein meals for lunch and or dinner. To exercise at least 30 minutes per day, preferably resistance training. To drink at least 90 oz of water every day. Remove processed foods from my diet. Avoid potatoes, rice and pasta, substitute veggies. I don’t drink soft drinks or coffee I do drink unsweetened tea I’ve been Uber driving and it is time-consuming. Making time for exercise is difficult. But I’m Putting my family first! I have been able to improve my energy through careful attention to diet, at least 7 hours sleep per night. I have much more energy for Piper and for my business. A side benefit is I have better focus and endurance. My suggestion to you is to check your energy every day. Ask yourself are you able to. Get up and move. Remove processed foods from your diet. Eat more lean protein. Drink more water and Reduce soft drinks and alcohol. You’ll be surprised how good you feel and how much energy you have. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

16. 

    15 Jan 2019

    002 - Quality Of Life

    One of the great things about living in the Dallas area are all of the events, festivals and activities during the summer. That’s right, we live in Dallas now. Piper and I went to the Watermelon Festival at the Dallas Farmers Market today. She loved it! She got to pet the farm animals and feed them. She was amazed by the beautiful farm fresh produce. We tried 3 or 4 different kinds of watermelon as we strolled along the vendor stalls. but her favorite was undoubtedly the watermelon cookie she found. She even shared her last bite with me. We really had a great time and can’t wait to take grandma when it gets a little cooler. I should probably bring you up to date since my first episode. I’m going to share what’s going on with me and my family. Life does happen and Aging Is Optional Radio is meant to document my journey Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

17. 

    15 Jan 2019

    001 - Welcome To Aging Is Optional Radio

    What is Aging Is Optional? It’s a manifesto - just listen to the intro of my podcast. It’s a mantra.It’s a mindset. It’s a lifestyle. It’s nutrition, exercise, supplementation, meditation, financial planning, travel, etc.. It’s the guests - subject matter experts, thought leaders, friends maybe even some of my relatives. My goal, my hope is to document my journey as I apply Aging Is Optional in my daily life, what I have learned, and the progress and/or setbacks I may have along the way. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio (http://supporter.acast.com/agingisoptionalradio). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

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